Singapore chokes on haze as Sumatran forest fires rage

By Peter Shadbolt, CNN

Updated 1832 GMT (0132 HKT) June 21, 2013

Singapore and Malaysia choked by smoke15 photos

Malaysia chokes on smoke – Students wear masks as haze shrouds Kuala Lumpur on June 23. Many schools in Malaysia were closed on Monday after air pollution caused by forest fires in Indonesia spiked to hazardous levels.

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Singapore and Malaysia choked by smoke15 photos

Malaysia chokes on smoke – Motorists drive as haze shrouds Malaysia's landmark Petronas Twins Towers in Kuala Lumpur on June 23. The Malaysian government declared a state of emergency on June 23 in two southern areas.

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Singapore and Malaysia choked by smoke15 photos

Malaysia chokes on smoke – A woman helps her friend with a face mask as haze shrouds Kuala Lumpur on June 23.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – Elderly people sign up to collect face masks at the community centre for the low income in Singapore on June 22, 2013.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – Apartment buildings were shrouded in a haze of smoke on Wednesday, June 19, in Singapore. The city-state's worst pollution crisis in more than a decade, the haze stems from illegal slash-and-burn forest fires in neighbouring Sumatra, Indonesia.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – An aerial photograph taken on June 17 showed smoke billowing from fires in areas surrounded by agricultural plantations in Rokan Hilir town in Sumatra, about 280 kilometers (173 miles) west of Singapore.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – The Singapore Flyer ferris wheel was barely visible through the smoke haze on June 20. That day, the country's Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record, reaching 371.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – Undeterred by the smog, a couple took engagement photographs in front of the city's skyline at the Marina Bay waterfront on June 20.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – A man cut a striking figure against Singapore's hazy skyline on June 20.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – Masked pedestrians crossed a street in the central business district on June 20.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – A local pharmacy put up an out-of-stock notice for face masks on June 20.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – People sat by the Singapore River as the city's hazy skyline was relatively brightened by night lights on June 20.

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Singapore chokes on smoke – The CEO of Singapore's National Environment Agency, Andrew Tan (R), arrived at the Indonesia Foreign Ministry office in Jakarta on June 20. Tan led the Singapore delegation for an emergency haze meeting convened by the Indonesian Foreign Ministry.

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Singapore and Malaysia choked by smoke15 photos

Singapore chokes on smoke – Indonesian firefighters from the Forest Ministry battled forest fires on June 20 in Pekanbaru, the capital of Riau province on Sumatra island.

Singapore is anxious to avoid a repeat of the 1997 haze crisis which cost an estimated $9 billion

Singapore was shrouded in haze on Wednesday as smoke from forest fires in nearby Sumatra drifted across the Malacca Strait in the city's worst pollution crisis in more than a decade.

Buildings in the city of 5.3 million people have been enveloped in a smoky haze since the beginning of the week as illegal burn off in nearby Indonesia and prevailing winds were causing a smoke crisis not seen since 1997.

Singapore's pollution index reached 371 on Wednesday, the worst level since 1997 when it reached 226, according to the Straits Times. The city's National Environment Agency said air quality becomes 'very unhealthy' when the index passes 200.

The agency said that thick haze would continue for the next few days as forest fires were still raging in Sumatra.

Singapore's Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said he would urge commercial pressure against firms causing the haze. Critics have accused Singapore and Malaysian palm oil companies of investing in Indonesian companies that are clearing land for palm plantations.

Dr Balakrishnan said on his Facebook site that he had approached his Indonesian counterpart, Balthasar Kambuaya, to express his "deep distress" at the situation.

"I suggested Minister Kambuaya name the companies responsible for the fires," Dr Balakrishnan posted on the site.

Singapore residents, meanwhile, could be seen around the central business district wearing facemasks or handkerchiefs.

"I can say it's actually getting worse," a Singapore-based energy industry analyst who did not want to be named told CNN. "The staff are taking pictures out of the office window because you can't see the cruise ship terminal which is only 500 metres away."

He said for three days the city has been under a pall of wood smoke that gave Singapore's normally highly urban central business district the smell of a campfire.

"It gives off this smoky smell like you've been sitting a bit too close to the hearth," he said. "Whoever would have thought that I'd be going to Hong Kong for a weekend simply to get a breath of fresh air."

Authorities in Singapore are anxious to avoid a repeat of the 1997 Southeast Asian haze which the government estimates cost $9 billion in health care costs and disrupted air travel and business.